著者

林 鳴宇 Mingwu Lin

出版者

学習院大学東洋文化研究所

雑誌

東洋文化研究 = Journal of Asian cultures (ISSN:13449850)

巻号頁・発行日

no.7, pp.321-347, 2005-03-31

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The offering of the body for burning is a kind of a Buddhistic self-immolation. Based on the Buddhism of Mahayana, the body is burned, and it is supposed to be the highest form of selfless giving. However, it is difficult to accept that a situation that causes such evident pain and an act that can occasionally be interpreted as recommending people to commit suicide are healthy religious acts. Conventionally, many of the Chinese emperors strictly forbade this offering. However, it was continuously practiced by Buddhists because they yearned to attain the Pure Land, by discarding the body and yearned to fulfill an important vow。 In the Chinese Tiantai school of Buddhism, which believes in the“Lotus Sutra,”some priests not only theoretically interpreted this practice, but many also practiced it. There exists a great difference in opinion regarding offering the body for burning, and it has been widely debated. The following three problems are discussed in this paper: (1) The origin of the practice of offering the body for burning. (2) Diverse views on offering the body for burning in Chinese Buddhism. (3) The offering of the body for burning in the Chinese Tiantai school of Buddhism.